MARC JACOBS
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Pastor Matt Stafford wanted to know what Regeneration was like before inviting others to take part. After Doug Warner introduced him to the Christian program, Stafford went through it himself.
“It changed me,” said Stafford, pastor of First Congregational Church in Hutchinson.
Now Stafford, Warner and other local church leaders are inviting residents to join a new group called Regeneration beginning Monday, Sept. 28. They say the program offers a place to examine painful experiences, harmful patterns and strained relationships while building a daily practice of faith.
Stafford said people may hear the word recovery and assume the program is only for those struggling with drugs or alcohol. Its reach is broader, he said. Someone might come because of anxiety, insecurity, apathy or a persistent need to please others. Another person may be wrestling with grief or wondering why they keep reacting the same way in difficult situations.
“If you ever find yourself laying in bed and thinking, ‘Why did I say that to that person, or why did that make me so mad, or why am I doing this self-destructive behavior?’” Stafford said, the program offers an opportunity to explore those questions.
Doug Warner said substance use and other harmful behaviors can sometimes be signs of pain a person has never worked through. During Regeneration, participants look back at experiences that hurt them and at ways they may have hurt others. They discuss guilt, shame and relationships through a biblical lens.
“Part of what we do is we go through a life inventory,” Warner said. The aim, he said, is to help people understand how past experiences affect the way they live now.
For Stafford, the work is personal. He spoke about losing someone to addiction and the questions that followed: whether he had done enough and whether he could have acted differently. He said people often carry struggles that are hard to admit until they find someone willing to listen.
“It’s nice to go somewhere and you tell somebody, ‘Hey, you know, I’m dealing with this right now,’ and somebody says, ‘You too,’” Stafford said. “And you realize that we’re all in this same boat together.”
Terry Warner said each Monday evening begins with participants gathered for worship music and usually a video testimony from someone who has gone through Regeneration. They then separate into men’s and women’s small groups. Participants are grouped by gender, rather than by the issue that brought them there.
In those smaller groups, they get to know one another, discuss work completed during the week and offer encouragement, she said. The evening typically ends around 8 p.m., though members continue praying for one another between meetings.
The program lasts about 10 months, Doug Warner said. Participants use a series of books with daily exercises that initially take about 15 minutes. The final portion focuses on tools they can continue using after the group ends, followed by a graduation celebration.
Doug Warner said the program’s central focus is a daily relationship with God. Terry Warner said she hopes participants who have been hurt come away with a stronger sense that those experiences do not determine their worth.
Stafford and Doug Warner connected with other local pastors through prayer and coffee groups. Stafford said the churches involved see the effort as a way to work together for the community.
The first session starts at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 28, at First Southern Baptist Church, 1201 E. 23rd St. Doug Warner said the first six to eight weeks will be open groups, giving people an opportunity to attend and learn how Regeneration works before deciding whether to continue.